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Social scientists have increasingly recognized the lack of diversity in survey research on American religion, resulting in a dearth of data on religion and spirituality (R/S) in understudied racial and ethnic groups. At the same time, epidemiological studies have increasingly diversified their racial and ethnic representation, but have collected few R/S measures to date. With a particular focus on American Indian and South Asian women (in addition to Blacks, Hispanic/Latinas, and white women), this study introduces a new effort among religion and epidemiology researchers, the Study on Stress, Spirituality, and Health (SSSH). This multi-cohort study provides some of the first estimates of R/S beliefs and practices among American Indians and U.S. South Asians, and offers new insight into salient beliefs and practices of diverse racial/ethnic and religious communities., Competing Interests: The authors have no conflicts of interest to declare.

Objective: The Marianismo Beliefs Scale (MBS) assesses five components of marianismo, a cultural script of Latina gender role expectations. This study evaluated the MBS's psychometric properties across language, sex, and Latino subgroups (Mexican American, Central American, Cuban American, Dominican American, Puerto Rican, and South American)., Method: Study sample was derived from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (HCHS/SOL) Sociocultural Ancillary Study which consisted of a community sample of 4879 Latino adults aged 18-64 from four field centers (Miami, FL, USA; San Diego, CA, USA; Bronx, NY, USA; Chicago, IL, USA)., Results: Confirmatory factor analyses supported five factors. English and Spanish versions demonstrated equivalence of factor loadings and error variances across Latino subgroups and sex., Conclusion: Although the MBS English and Spanish versions are psychometrically sound measures for male and female Latino adults, future research is needed to determine whether direct scale scores are comparable., (© 2020 Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Background: Individuals with "metabolically healthy obesity" (MHO) phenotype (i.e., obesity and absence of cardiometabolic abnormalities: favorable levels of blood pressure, lipids, and glucose) experience lower risk of cardiovascular disease compared with those with "metabolically at-risk obesity" (MAO) phenotype (i.e., obesity with concurrent cardiometabolic abnormalities). Among Hispanic/Latino women and men with obesity, limited data exist on the correlates of and body composition measures associated with obesity phenotypes., Methods: Data from the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos (2008-2011) were used to estimate the age-adjusted distribution of obesity phenotypes among 5,426 women and men (aged 20-74 years) with obesity (BMI ≥ 30 kg/m 2 ) and to compare characteristics between individuals with MHO and MAO phenotypes. Weighted Poisson regression models were used to examine cross-sectional associations between 1-standard deviation (SD) increase in body composition measures (i.e., body fat percentage, waist circumference, and body lean mass) and MHO phenotype prevalence., Results: The age-adjusted proportion of the MHO phenotype was low (i.e., 12.5% in women and 6.5% in men). In bivariate analyses, women and men with the MHO phenotype were more likely to be younger, have higher education and acculturation levels, report lower lifetime cigarette use, and have fasting insulin and waist circumference levels than MAO. Adjusting for sociodemographic and lifestyle factors, among women, each 1-SD increase in body fat percentage, waist circumference, and lean body mass was, respectively, associated with a 21%, 33%, and 31% lower prevalence of the MHO phenotype. Among men, each 1-SD increase in waist circumference and lean body mass was, respectively, associated with a 20% and 15% lower prevalence of the MHO phenotype., Conclusions: We demonstrated that higher waist circumference and higher lean body mass were independently associated with a lower proportion of the MHO phenotype in Hispanic/Latino women and men. Findings support the need for weight reduction interventions to manage cardiometabolic health among Hispanics/Latinos.

Hispanics are affected by many health care disparities. The National Cancer Institute (NCI), through its Special Populations Branch, is supporting networking and capacity-building activities designed to increase Hispanic participation and leadership in cancer research. Redes En Acción established a national network of cancer research centers, community-based organizations, and federal partners to facilitate opportunities for junior Hispanic scientists to participate in training and research projects on cancer control. Since 2000, Redes En Acción has established a network of more than 1800 Hispanic leaders involved in cancer research and education. The project has sustained 131 training positions and submitted 29 pilot projects to NCI for review, with 16 awards for a total of $800,000, plus an additional $8.8 million in competing grant funding based on pilot study results to date. Independent research has leveraged an additional $32 million in non-Redes funding, and together the national and regional network sites have participated in more than 1400 community and professional awareness events. In addition, the program conducted extensive national survey research that provided the basis for the Redes En Acción Latino Cancer Report, a national agenda on Hispanic cancer issues. Redes En Acción has increased participation in cancer control research, training, and awareness among Hispanic scientists and within Hispanic communities. Cancer 2006. (c) 2006 American Cancer Society.

Although cancer is a leading cause of morbidity and premature death among Latinos, there is limited knowledge of cancer-related issues and priorities of greatest significance to the Latino population, the largest minority group in the nation. This information is vital in helping to guide Latino cancer research, training, and awareness efforts at national, regional, and local levels. To help identify cancer issues of greatest relevance to Latinos, Redes En Accion, The National Hispanic/Latino Cancer Network, a major network among the National Cancer Institute's Special Populations Networks, conducted a survey of 624 key opinion leaders from around the country. Respondents were asked to rank the three cancer sites most important to Latinos in their region and the five issues of greatest significance for this population's cancer prevention and control. Recommendations were prioritized for three specific areas: 1) research, 2) training and/or professional education, and 3) awareness and/or public education. Among cancers, breast carcinoma was ranked number one, followed in order by cervical and lung carcinomas. The issues of greatest significance to Latinos were 1) access to cancer screening and care, 2) tobacco use, 3) patient-doctor communication, 4) nutrition, and 5) risk communication. This survey solicited information from scientists, health care professionals, leaders of government agencies, professional and community-based organizations, and other stakeholders in Latino health. The results laid the foundation for a national Redes En Accion Latino cancer agenda, thus providing a useful tool for individuals and organizations engaged in cancer prevention and control efforts among the Hispanic-Latino population.